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[ male announcer ] join the nearly 7 million investors who think like you do. face time and think time make a difference. at edward jones, it's how we make sense of investing. the white house can take executive action to address gun violence. he made that comment before starting a closed door meeting at the white house that included victims of gun violence and members of advocacy group assembled for a series of listing sessions. they said the meeting is not a photo op and will leave to immediate urgent action. >> the president is back and executive action can be taken. we haven't decide what that is yet, but we are compiling it all

and all the rest of the members. prar. >> the nra is sending a lobbyist and the nations's largest retailer of guns admitted it is underestimating the expectation to attend the meeting. it did under estimated it and back tracked the decision to participate. peter alexander joins us from the white house. peter, has the white house elaborated on vice president joe biden's comment on executive action? >> it's a good question and i finished a conversation with the president of the brady campaign against gun violence. i said did you learn anything more about what the action could look like? what could it look like? the white house or at least the vice president with more than 20 people in the room did not list any specific actions that could take place. that's one thing we are all hanging on here at the white

house. to find out not just what the president may propose in terms of comprehensive reform that would require and need to go through congress, but what he could do today in the absence of congress, we are waiting to find out what that might be. >> joining us now is a democrat from connecticut. thank you so much for joining us. >> it's a pleasure. >> let me get your reaction to the president saying they could take executive action. they are giving you an f rating with no sign of support from you. i don't think you mind that. >> no. >> would you mind executive action from the white house and the president? >> first of all, i don't know and it hasn't been specified what the vice president is talking about, but i welcome executive action and the president has executive power to take actions in these areas. i don't know what they

specifically are and obviously we will look at that, but i welcome executive action in order to move quickly on the issues that will make a difference in the debate. >> to your point, peter alexander and the team of reporter who is cover the white house asking for more specifics on that. but it would likely point to what we have seen from the fiscal debate in congress. gridlock. you have mitch mcconnell on the sunday morning program saying the priority for congress are fiscal issues or gun control would be a back burner issue. whatever he meant by that point to way too many times in congress on big issues which is a gridlock. >> we shouldn't slow down and there shouldn't be gridlock over the effort. the newtown event and the events in sandy hook was overwhelming. it was a slaughter of the innocence. the crucial turning point of what ought to be a dialogue in three areas and the assault

weapons and the high capacity magazine clips should be what we will do about mental health care services for people in this nation. i applaud the vice president and the commission. it appears to be far reaching in scope and my hope is what they will recommend is that we do ban assault weapons and the high capacity clips and we take a look at the mental health services in our schools and professionals and providing greater access to mental health services. to take a look at the loopholes and also we ought to begin. i don't have specifics, but we ought to begin about what are the culturings that glorifies

violence. >> he said it doesn't have to be all or nothing and we would rather do something than nothing. we have advocates who point to the same issues with violence and movies and the television industry and the video games. all of those are warranted of our attention and doesn't need to be all or nothing. that seems to be coming from a number of lawmakers. >> it doesn't need to be all or nothing. it needs to be a focused agenda and i'm of the belief what we need to did is focus on the banning of the assault weapons. the high capacity magazine clips and we ought to focus on mental health care services both in the schools and a broad-based way. you have 67% of adults and 80% of children who need serious attention for serious mental illnesses who are going untreated. that is a problem. if we dealt with those two

issues and began a dialogue and a conversation, we would be making progress. >> thank you so much, congresswoman. we appreciate your voice in this conversation. let me bring in our panel. nationally syndicated talk show host michael smerconish and dnc communications director and political analyst. i will start with you, michael. the white house is threatening executive action on the front page of his blog or website there. you can bet there will be a number of other conservatives saying that the president is trying to big foot congress and make a move that he has wanted in taking away guns. >> it's hard to know what the vice president was referring to. i doubt however that he was talking about some unilateral action on the part of the white house relative to assault weapons or magazine capacity. i think they have a very difficult time in changing the

preaccepts of the second amendment without the participation of congress. it's more of an access question focused on the mental health component. >> let me play chris christie. he made the rounds and is on the cover of "time" magazine with the word boss and a lot of glory given to him and how he handled sandy and stood up to his party and chose not to vote on the package. here's his reaction to the conversation on gun control and legislation. let me play it. >> if we don't deal with the substance abuse and mental illness issues, we are short changing this. >> if they deal with those issues, would you support a federal ban on assault weapons? >> depends on what they do. >> why not say yes or no? >> it's not that easy. you would like me to give you the answers, but the fact is these are complicated issues. >> complicate and not that easy from the man who everyone around

these days said is the bold straight talker. he wouldn't answer the question. back to joe biden. we don't know what he meant, but are those words about executive action and floating that out there because of lawmakers who are chris christie and bold talkers and can't take a stand for whatever reason when you ask about a ban on these magazines. >> you are right and the most important point is what you highlighted. you have the military that we can't do everything, does it mean we do nothing? where the congress and white house gets stuck, they label the comprehensive approach. you might as well stick it in the dead-on arrival box then. we have a few things going on. the chris christies in the world where if they get stuff up front dealing with the concerns of the gun levy such as help on the mental health front and enforcing the laws on the book which is something you can do

with executive action, by the time you get to the assault weapon ban by going piece meal, the administration and the movement to curb gun violence can say we met you. we have done the other things now. come on in. >> let me bring you in. we point out a couple of options that the white house can be looking at. incremental and mental health screenings. the bolder move that is the weapons ban and background checks for all purchases and national gun ownership database. as mentioned, the nra is not sending their ceo or chief and they are sending a lobbyist. wal-mart, the nation's largest gun retailer under estimated the significance of this meeting despite newtown and the conversations. it is participating tomorrow. anything on that list you believe that would be supported by the nra at this point? >> hard to tell. the other thing to the point

that michael made, hard to tell what was on the list. remember in 2011 the department of justice convened a similar meeting to look at the options in terms of executive action and a list that was actually put together that got put on the back burner with other issues that took center stage. clearly there was research that has been done in the administration regarding what kind of things can be done f. we start with mental health or enforcing the laws, perhaps that's a way to get buy in from the nra or to try a wedge between the nra leadership and the membership. what we have seen is very divergent views on the issues. >> let me read what they talk about with the gun challenge in this going at an incremental pace. the risk of the approach is that it can't pass congress. it's a bit of a motor cal box for the white house.

they like to do something and there is a chance, but what is possible and what gun control advocates want are not in the same ballpark. do you agree with that? >> i think lynn sweet hit it on the head when she said they want to avoid biting off more than they can chew. the problem is how do you appeal to chris christie's viewpoint that speaks for many where in order to deal with him, you are going to have to give up thing he is looking for. to get a buy in on an assault weapons ban, you have to convince him of a mental health component that speaks to his concerns. if the several issues are in play, does it run lynn sweet the risk of being too comprehensive for passage? that's the question. >> tamron? >> i see that is the balancing act that biden and the white house and leader who is want something to happen have to do.

sometimes is something better than nothing do sacrifice the perfect for the good. to show movement, they might not go with the comprehensive approach and just to get something done, every action takes away some objection from somebody. at some point, they will say i'm for an assault weapon ban. that's one of the most powerful thus far. you have a commander from our armed services saying that's the gun i carried. my soldiers carried that in afghanistan and it doesn't belong on our streets. that's what we need and the coalition building i would like to see the administration do. >> we heart police officers say those who are putting their lives on the line on the streets, when they go in to save one of us, they don't know if the person robbing the bank or is shooting at a school is more

armed or well armed than they are. we are hearing from all of those people who are part of this conversation. we will see where it goes. thank you, karen, michael, and lynn. >> thank you. >> elizabeth warren joins a course of lawmakers and a lot of you at home, slamming aig as the insurer considers suing the government after the taxpayer bailout it received. warren said aig should not bite the hand that fed them. the big meeting that is happening right now. you can join our conversation on twitter. you can find out at tamron hall and "news nation." we'll be right back. i've always had to keep my eye on her... but, i didn't always watch out for myself. with so much noise about health care... i tuned it all out. with unitedhealthcare, i get information that matters... my individual health profile. not random statistics.

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p president obama will nominate chief of staff jack loo for secretary as soon as tomorrow. he would replace timothy geitner and he is the former director and if confirmed by the senate, it would be president obama's appointment and major battles ahead over the debt limit and reducing the deficit. meantime, new talk from the obama administration that the u.s. could decide to pull all remaining troops out of afghanistan by the end of next year. the deputy national adviser for strategic communication would not rule that out during a conference call with reporters. >> that would be an option we would consider because again the president does not view the negotiations as having a goal of keeping u.s. troops in

afghanistan. >> the pentagon said thousands of troops may be needed beyond 2014 to contain al qaeda who currently has 66,000 troops there. all of this comes with president obama scheduled to meet with hamid karzai friday at the white house. karzai is in washington and will meet with a group of senators including mitch mcconnell. joining us is retired four-star ynl and vote vets.org who served twice in i wack. thank you very much for joining us. general, i will start off with you. many intricate or believe that the president's choice in john kerry and check hagel indicate withdrawing more troops and leaving far fewer in that country and as we move forward with other possible conflicts. >> i hope so. i think both are vietnam vets and wounded in action.

they have a very realistic view on the limitations of military power. this is going to be important. president obama is not going to get much out of karzai from a strictly military perspective and maybe 30,000 troops is the right answer for air power and counter terrorism and intelligence support in afghanistan. i don't think that's going to happen. i'm not too sure we are not well-served by going to a near zero option. >> karzai said he wants the u.s. out of afghanistan, but we know there is a concern about al qaeda and the overall safety here from terrorist who is live and exist there. >> yeah, but a problem with dealing with karzai who two years from now, it is likely he will be in dubai with his family. it's likely that that will unravel minus a significant military presence. having said that, i don't think he will give us a status force

agreement. politically he is playing games. he's a tribal leader. i don't think we are going to leave force there is minus guarantees they will not be subject who whatever we think of the afghan judgment. >> you have written about this as well. you believe hagel and kerry are indicators we will not have troops in afghanistan past next year, right? >> he didn't support the had the when he put the surge in. the 2014 thing is ironic. we were always supposed to go to answer n 2014. what's going on with the pentagon about how many troops they want to leave and people are pushing for proposals. the question is what's the mission after 2014. if it's a counter terror mission, the vice president wanted where chuck hagel is going. what's happening in the next 24

months? we have a lot of officers embedded with afghan units to protect a security blanket. at what point do we transition off and go to an assist and what is our relationship post 2014? we can leave contractors on the ground, but iraq didn't deteriorate like people said. there have been no attacks since they left. i'm happy with where we are at. i hope we go to and put the pressure on the afghans. there is a type of stalemate. >> there is the hope, but what is the reality pointing to the continued effort or whatever role we would have as you pointed out s. how realistic is that in afghanistan? >> i don't think we go to zero because there will be a counter trr mission. there is a mission in the afghan

and pakistan region. is it a suffice counter terror force with a force package? that takes us out of the nation building and the embedded with the afghan force. we are embedded with that force. we go to an operational level, the president has given us a thearm is not accurate. troops are not in combat operations. >> i agree all the time in afghanistan, but this question of what is the going to be in the next 24 months and how we transition to the mission in 2014. >> thank you for your time. still ahead, new comments from tech tear of state hillary clinton who is back at work as you know. we have video. >> i am thrilled to be back. >> thrilled to be back and what else? one of the things we thought you should know. plus, major turmoil in venezuela after hugo chavez's swearing in is put on hold after surgery for

cancer. the latest there and lance armstrong opens up to oprah. what's being called a no holds barred interview about his doping allegations. 0.

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there have been calls for massive rallies tomorrow. as i just stated, the opposition is saying if chavez is too sick, it's time to go. what can you tell us? >> it's almost surrealistic. a country of 25 million people and history and extraordinary culture. one of two opec nations. they give 100,000 barrels of day of petroleum. in a foreign nation for over a month, his health is a state security issue. the constitution and i had to call up the article of the constitution with president chavez reaffirmed and asked for said that on the 10th of january, the president must be sworn in in front of the congress or if he can't number front of the congress, in front of the supreme court of that

nation. according to his people in cuba, his people say he is going to be unavailable for swearing in tomorrow. i think he will stay in the cuban hospital. the supreme court of that country said you know what, let's extend his mandate. no need to be sworn in. that's what's going on in one of two opec nations. >> that are is not satisfactory to any in the country. might there be violence or something no protests in the street and the next action. what could happen if he is hiding or in an undisclosed location in cuba and little is coming out here. >> it's clear he went to cuba among other reasons so he could control the information about his health if that was a problem. the reality of the matter that he has been in power for so many years and he has a lot of

control. the question is what is going to happen. that's a very good question because so far the opposition has been tepid, mild in its criticism of the president and the fact of the matter is that we may see a president in another country in a hospital and his health unknown in power indefinitely. >> what a story. thank you so much. i'm sure we will be talking with you as this cannot go on indefinitely as you well know. good to see you. coming up, a commuter ferry packed with hundreds of passengers in new york city crashes, injuring people, dozens of them. details on what happened there this morning. plus in police suspect they are driving drunk, can they force to you give a blood sample or is a warrant necessary first? the supreme court takes up that issue, by the way today. be sure to check out the "news

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[ male announcer ] truth is, nyquil doesn't unstuff your nose. what? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus liquid gels speeds relief to your worst cold symptoms plus has a decongestant for your stuffy nose. thanks. that's the cold truth! . >> right now we are waiting for word on whether insurance giant aig that received that $182 billion bailout from taxpayers will sue the u.s. government. the board has been meeting to decide whether to join a $25 billion lawsuit claiming the bailout deal was unfair to the company and shareholders. among those outraged, the senator from massachusetts elizabeth warren saying taxpayers across the country saved aig from ruin and it would be outrageous for this company to turn around and sue the federal government. aig should thank the taxpayers for respect and not bite the hand that fed them. now contributing editor, aig is

thanking the american public in a new ad. we spoke with the writer who did the first story. they have this huge ad campaign where they are thinking and debating whether to bite the hand that feeds them. they are taking elizabeth warren's advice. >> exactly. let's be fair for a moment. this was not a suit that they initiated, but that herb greenberg who was much in the news because he was part of an investigation. he instituted it. >> at the point you said to be fair to aig, do you understand your twitter is about to blow up? they didn't have to join. the board is deciding they could have come out and said we are not going to do this. >> i'm saying -- >> to be fair they had a choice in the matter. >> on a factual basis, they should have in my view and are going everybody else's view, this is an are you serious moment. the board could have received this petition and said no way.

the fact that it's taken two days to mull whether or not this is a wise policy. >> they say they may not give the answer as to whether they will sue in a month. while these ads saying thank you to america are airing, thank you for your money we paid you back with interest. back to what they are claiming here is unfair treatment. this is like a fireman saving someone and -- >> doing mouth to mouth resuscitation. they sue the lifeguard. that's a hilarious column and the absurdity. >>. >> 80 cents for every dollar they had. they were diluting the value and if there was no bailout, there would have been no aig stock. the company would have gone

bankrupt. they would have gotten zero cents on the dollar. >> in case they missed the ad, here's the thank you america ad. to remind you of the message they had been sending out. >> now we are helping the east coast recover from hurricane sandy. >> bar we are leaving here in america. >> we were paid every dollar america lent us. >> everything and a profit of $22 billion. >> for the american people. >> thank you, america. >> huh a specific reaction. >> the board is claiming they have a fiduciary responsibility to consider the merits of the constitute as their role. the reality is the fact that we are talking about this on tv and outraged tones. come on. this is not -- no way to get around the absurdity. they have a responsibility to protect the reputation of aig. this is not good for the reputation. >> it's not good when you have news stories that are being reported. they want to sue. you go to a special break. that ad is the commercial.

>> they spend a lot of money on that ad. that's a multimillion-dollar campaign meant to resuscitate their image. i'm sure a lot of people are watching that have aig insurance directly or indirectly. there is no way in which we approve value for that and every way in which we destroy value for this. that should have been an easy decision. i don't know why it wasn't. >> thank you so much. good to see you. coming up, the first read team notes that we will do the sound. the fast rising obama doctrine is clear and fully implemented. they write in his first term, president obama was boxed in politically by the pentagon and a cabinet full of politically palatable pull overs. joining me now to explain what they mean, great pleasure to have you on. so the obama doctrine, clear and fully implemented. elaborate, please.

>> we are starting to see what a lot of people expect from a candidate president obama. you have to realize that he separated himself from hilly clinton because he was against the iraq war. he was given that speech because of a dumb war that he is not -- the campaign promises said he would end the war in iraq and ramp up the war to go after bin laden and drawback. that's what he is doing. what you are starting to see with this afghanistan announcement yesterday or the conference call they had with the white house, a zero option is on the table. he could keep as few as zero troops in after 2014. this new cabinet coming in, this really is the obama national security team. people who more reflect his values rather than something that is politically palatable. he doesn't have to worry about the politics.

he can put john brennan at the cia and have john kerry at the secretary of state. all reflecting the values of barack obama and obama doctrine that a lot of people expected. >> you also wrote he probably regrets the afghan surge, but he can never say it because soldiers died. >> a lot of us -- the prospects for peace were always bleak. the ability to nation build in a country like that and to be able to raise the number of troops you would have to have in a country like that to be able to put that on the footing is exceedingly difficult. very difficult. there is no alternative economy to copy for a lot of farmers that are there that makes heroin and opium for heroin, that is a very difficult situation for the united states to be in. i think we are starting to see vice president biden's advice where he said they needed to drawdown and do more covert

operations and a narrow policy. that's more what you are starting to see. president obama can never say politically that they regretted the surge. they handed off the security to afghanis, but there is note much change in afghanistan four years later. >> thank you very much for the first hour. coming up, the "news nation" gut check. mom and dad, how about a beer. a new law would allow parents to buy alcohol at bars and restaurants for their kids just shy of being legal. is that okay with you? should that be the law? plus, round two for beyonce. the list of performers for this year's presidential inauguration. they have been announced and b is on the list. what will she sing? that's one of the things we thought you should know. [ roasting firewood ] ♪

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lance armstrong will sit down with oprah to address the doping scandal that saw him stripped of seven tour de france titles. the interview comes as fresh allegations are emerging that a representative for lance armstrong tried to donate a quarter of a million to the u.s. anti-doping agency investigating him. it will be the first tv interview since being accused of leading a doping program and lying about it resulting in the loss of his titles and put an end to his competitive career. "sports illustrated" david episteam, the premier writer on all things lance armstrong. why is he going to oprah's couch? he has to bring something to the table. >> oprah has been very, very friendly to him in the past. when she interviewed him under a federal indictment, she didn't

ask him about that. that made a lot of critics wonder how much of the conversation was negotiated. she has been a big supporter of his. it's no mystery that he is turning to her. >> a flood of evidence and other you and others call evidence has been revealed since that interview including being stripped of his titles and other things with the live strong foundation and his leadership there being taken away. then and now is very different. >> it is. if this is not a confession to some degree, it will beg the question why is he going on there at all? if it's another denial, we have the tape of that. >> here wants to confess. what would he confess to? >> that's true. i think his camp has put feelers out to see how various confessions would impact him getting back into sports. he has his legal exposure to think about both civilly and

potentially criminally. >> he talked with lawyers and this is not an interview where he is spilling out thoughts and his guts as they say. he is lawyerized if we can use that phrase. >> his most striding critics is will he apologize to the people he tried to ruin? i don't think anyone expects that. >> other teammates? >> masseuses and people who wrote about him and people he ran out of the sport and there is a human toll to this. >> do you think that's what people are looking at, an apology and whether or not he was dopey ing? >> i think at this point if someone feels that lance was not doping, nothing is going to. >> people defend him. >> not a lot of people. the people that are tuned in to him are looking to see will he apologize for the human vileness that was documented. >> marian jones who talk talked about using

performance-enhancing drugs and how to apologize, it never put them back to the level that they were as far as this athlete was praise. it did provide a source of empathy. a young woman felt a lot of pressure to take these drugs to perform at this level. >> i think so. again, i think people who follow sports doping view the interview as being soft and about as good for marian jones as you could have been. that's why lance is going on oprah. >> that existed years ago. >> absolutely not. no matter what happens, he will cost himself a lot of money and his competitive career. he will get back to triathlons at 50 years old? no. she separated from his cancer foundation. >> why go on? why talk with her if there is nothing to gain? >> lance may be forced to testify.

if he sees forced testimony coming up and said i want to control this before i am forced to do it and it could be trying to get the best out of the confession, he is never a good who let the story run him. he likes control and this is one of the only ways he can attempt to do that now. >> we will see what he says. great to talk with you. a ferry crash in new york city tops the look at stories around the nation. 57 people were hurt and two critically when a commuter ferry crashed into a dock in lower manhattan. passengers said they were jolted out of their streets. it is not known what caused the accident. the company that runs the ferry said the captain was at the helm at the time and passed a breathalyzer test. boston mayor is declaring a public health emergency due it a flu outbreak. the virus is being blamed for three deaths in min nebraska, and michigan. they report at least 18 pediatric deaths so far this flu

season. a preliminary hearing for james holmes ended without a single witness for the defense. prosecution witness described pictures found on holmes's phone showing him posing with guns and dressed in ballistic equipment. authorities testified he bought tickets to the dark knight and returned nearly two weeks in advance and had been planning the attacks for months. he is accused of killing 12 and injuring 58 others last july. the supreme court is hearing arguments in a case that will decide if police have the right to take a blood test from dui suspects without their consent. proponents said blood tests are necessary because a person's blood alcohol level dropped overtime. such a test violates an individual's privacy. our "news nation" gut check is next. do you think it should be legal for parents to buy alcohol for their kids who are just shy of 21? it is actually a law being

proposed and exists right now in 18 states. we ask you to join the "news nation." we'll be right back with the gut check.

there is a lot going on and things we thought you should know. hillary clinton made her first on camera comments and she said she is thrilled to be back at work. >> we are focused on continuing our work, finishing up everything we can and helping senator kerry with the transition. it's a bitter sweet experience and i had an extraordinary experience and worked with an amazing team of people. >> a church announced they will

perform same-sex marriages within the next year. it will be one of the most e spisk pal churches to implement the change. here's a musical lineup for president obama's inauguration. beyonce, kelly clarkson and james taylor will perform. richard blanco will join as a poet making him the youngest and first latino poet to perform at a presidential swearing in ceremony. those are the things we thought you should know. time for the "news nation" gut check. lawmakers are considering a bill to allow parents to buy alcohol for children who are balts and not 21. they can buy them at bars and restaurants. the state senator said he thought of it when he and his wife took their dinner to dinner for a 20th birthday and couldn't share a toast with her. he also wants parents of returning service members to be able to buy their kids a drink

this a bar or restaurant. a total of 11 states have similar laws in place. mothers against drunk driving said they are against the idea and when people under the age of 21 drink alcohol with their parents, they drink more frequently and in large quantities. what does your gut you? would you allow parents to buy alcohol for their kids between the ages of 18 and 21? go to facebook.com to cast that vote. a follow-up on yesterday's gut check. reaction from the woman who is an internet sensation following comments about her during the bcs championship game the camera focused on miss alabama they went on and on about how beautiful she is. they apologized about the comments, but katherine webb defended him. >> i think the media has been really unfair to him. i think that if he would have

said something along the line of we were hot or sexy or made derogatory statements like that, that would have been a little bit different. the fact that he said we were beautiful or gorgeous, i don't see why any woom wouldn't be flattered. 78% said no. that does it for this edition of "news nation." thank you for joining me and see you tomorrow. the cycle is up next. with so much noise about health care... i tuned it all out. with unitedhealthcare, i get information that matters... my individual health profile. not random statistics. they even reward me for addressing my health risks. so i'm doing fine... but she's still going to give me a heart attack. we're more than 78,000 people looking out for more than 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare.

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